...for the one who dislikes the reader so much. :) I've heard the "nails on a chalkboard" simile applied to other good readers, so take it with a grain of salt. Or better: preview the recording, and if you feel you can't stand the reader's voice, don't bother listening.

Very much a discourse on "good books" which can get tedious to those who prefer action. I recognized a lot of authors' names from my time with LibriVox books. You can probably find most of the good AND bad authors (in Roger's opinion) on LV.

The "action" part was a little contrived, but still fun. I liked how it ended.

P.S. I preferred the prequel, "Parnassus on Wheels" better. ;)

Great story and read.

This is one of my favorite stories. I love The Haunted Bookshop and reading it is a joy. It is written in such a unique way that modern authors would do well to take a lesson from Mr. Morley and his interesting prose style. My only complaint about this audio version is that the reader is awful. Her voice is like fingernails on a chalkboard and the only saving grace to this is that it is free. If only a better reader had done this I would have given it 5 stars.

There was a time, not so long ago, when we routinely haunted second-hand bookstores on Saturday afternoons. I can even remember dusty stores that smelled of cigar or pipe smoke. All of that is gone now. None of those bookstores that we used to haunt are still in business. Our shrine to those better times are our overstuffed living room bookshelves.

Anyway, this novel is a gift to the book lover. The plot about German bad guys seemed unnecessary to me. I wanted to spend more evenings at the bookstore.

Even before finishing this novel I downloaded Parnassus on Wheels. I enjoyed that one too, but The Haunted Bookstore really spoke to me.

Very well read as well.

Ω The Haunted Bookshop is not a spooky story. It is a timeless story from the wake of the Great War, given a comfortable treatment by J. M. Smallheer. It is a tale for booklovers who long for the days when one could peruse well-used books in incandescent light, without annoying "music" competing for the attention.
There are sub-plots of romance and danger for the less-thoughtful readers. The narrative gave me authors and books to check out.
I gave it ⭐⭐⭐⭐ only for the same reason that I think our society is too ready to give standing ovations to any mediocre guitar band. This is not Shakespeare. It is just a pleasant book to curl up with next to the fireplace. Have some perspective. Just because it is a good story doesn't mean it should get the highest rating.

A lighthearted mystery for booklovers; well read.

It was enjoyable and for the period from which it was composed, I can overlook the faults that some reviewers have mentioned.

This book has a plot on which the author hangs his erudition about other great books. You need to go into this willing to be pleased as he gives shout-outs to various obscure books, which were obscure enough at the time of writing that he wanted to give them a bit of a prod along in the public conciousness. You need to love the sort of weirdoes that hang out in the book trade. You need to accept that the author is a bit of a pervert in his treatment of his young heroine (he describes how you'd stalk her on the street so that you could stare at her, which a lot of the male characters seem to do, driven by almost magnetc forces beyond their control.) If you can move past all that, it's a really pleasant listen, and the read of it is just excellent. Its one of the best LV books I've listened to, although I work with books, so, perhaps I'm its core audience.

I agree more with Xbeza than Doinker. It's a fun read just because of the commentary on the books - the plot seems secondary, although it's nice to spend the second half chasing around after German plotters. J.M. Smallheer does an excellent job of reading - even the long passages where Roger discourses about good (and bad) literature are full of life and interest.

But you can decide for yourself (with a bit of help from the author). Here's the introduction (from the Project Gutenberg Ebook):

"TO THE BOOKSELLERS

Be pleased to know, most worthy, that this little book is dedicated to you in affection and respect.

The faults of the composition are plain to you all. I begin merely in the hope of saying something further of the adventures of ROGER MIFFLIN, whose exploits in "Parnassus on Wheels" some of you have been kind enough to applaud. But then came Miss Titania Chapman, and my young advertising man fell in love with her, and the two of them rather ran away with the tale.

I think I should explain that the passage in Chapter VIII, dealing with the delightful talent of Mr. Sidney Drew, was written before the lamented death of that charming artist. But as it was a sincere tribute, sincerely meant, I have seen no reason for removing it.

. . .

Now that Roger is to have ten Parnassuses on the road, I am emboldened to think that some of you may encounter them on their travels. And if you do, I hope you will find that these new errants of the Parnassus on Wheels Corporation are living up to the ancient and honourable traditions of our noble profession.

CHRISTOPHER MORLEY.

Philadelphia,
April 28, 1919"

This is a rather long-winded story that takes over half the read to(slowly)kick into gear. It's also very heavy-handed, which may not have been a problem when it was written, but certainly is now. What is of interest are the scores of other actual books mentioned along the way. The listener is actually drawn to them more than the story at hand.

The timing of this novel is set and was written right before the Versailles accord of 1919, which set the wheels of Nazi Germany into motion. Morley treats the residents of his book more like chess pieces than like human beings. Rather than endowing them with grand speeches and long soliloquies about other authors, it would have been nice had the characterization and story background been flushed out a bit more. We never really learn much about the characters in this book - the protagonists and villains seem cut out of a single piece of cardboard. They say or do their piece, then they go away.

Still, if you have many hours to while away, it's an okay way to pass the time.

After the funny, educational and rather lengthy exposition (where the author suggests you to skip half a chapter) there comes a cute detective and love story. Notable is the anti-german accent, as the story plays after the World War I. The voice acting is done very well.